RS Class: Unique Trawler Joins Russian Fleet

Monday, April 14, 2014

Up-to-date fishing vessel Taurus has entered service under the survey of Russian Maritime Register of Shipping (RS). The ship was built to the dual RS/DNV class and registered under the flag of the Russian Federation. The ordering customer and shipowner is ZAO TAURUS of Murmansk.

The new trawler carries state-of-the-art equipment for fishing and fish processing. Being relatively small (length – 63.85 m, breadth – 13.5 m), it carries fish processing equipment of three factories with planned catch through-put of up to 100 t of fish per day. Automated lines make it possible to butcher and freeze cod, produce fillets and canned fish with minimum manned operation. Production processes are monitored online from the office of the owner company in Murmansk. According to the estimates of experts who took part in the construction survey, no ship so sophisticated as this has ever joined the fishing fleet flying the Russian flag.

The new trawler has been built by ULJANIK of Pula, the oldest shipyard in Croatia. The history of this shipyard is being written for nearly 160 years. The cooperation between ULJANIK and RS totals several decades: the first RS-classed ship slipped from the yard stocks in 1963. At present, the outfitting of a sister ship Mirakh for ZAO Murmanseld-2 is underway at the yard. This trawler delivery is planned for July 2014.